Oshawa port

OSHAWA -- Proponents for an ethanol plant at the Port of Oshawa have withdrawn their application for funding from the federal government.

FarmTech Energy has withdrawn its application for funding under the ecoAgriculture Biofuels Capital Initiative, commonly known as ecoABC, for a corn ethanol plant on the Oshawa port lands. The federal program provides up to $25 million for qualifying projects.

"FarmTech withdrew from ecoABC because delays with the project meant we were not going to be able to meet the program's time lines," said FarmTech president Dan O'Connor via e-mail. "The withdrawal from the program in no way affects our commitment to building an ethanol plant at the Port of Oshawa. We are excited to bring this $200 million investment, as well as the many new jobs, to Oshawa and the Durham Region."

Patrick Girard, a spokesman for Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC), said that since his department is no longer considering funding for the facility, AAFC will no longer be completing an environmental assessment for the project.

The withdrawal from the program in no way affects

He explained that the program applies to projects expected to complete construction by Sept. 30, 2012 and projects completed by the end of March could have been considered.

"Approved projects that are not successfully commissioned by the program end date will not receive any ecoABC contribution," he said.

Oshawa Mayor John Henry pointed out that his council, the previous council and Regional council are all opposed to building the plant on the port lands.

"Oshawa is still not a willing host," he said. "There is a willing host and that is Brock Township. They grow corn in Brock Township, they don't grown corn at our harbour," he said, adding that the jobs would be there in Brock too.

"When you go down to Lakeview Park on Canada Day and you see how fantastic that park is do you really want to look at an ethanol refinery?"

But the City does not have approval authority on the federally owned port lands and Oshawa Port Authority chairman Gary Valcour said he's still interested in an ethanol project.

"I'm interested in continuing to explore and I hope it means they've found some alternative funding source, but I don't know that absolutely," he said.

Mayor Henry, however, pointed to the recent closure of an ethanol plant in North Dakota as a sign that building new ethanol plants might not be a good idea.

"Is ethanol a thing of the past? And should we get on with studying alternatives such as hydrogen?" asked the mayor.

Reporter Reka Szekely covers the City of Oshawa for Metroland Media Group’s Durham Region Division. Reka's social media column appears every other week. Contact her on Facebook, Twitter (@rszekely)